This disclosure relates to robotic systems and in particular to robotic systems for treatment of bone fractures.
Lower limb fractures account for nearly a third of all fractures, and the ratio is still growing, due to the ageing of the population. A large number of lower limb fractures, that are very common in trauma centers, are those associated with long bones. The treatment of long bone fractures includes two main steps. First, the fracture is reduced, and then the bone fragments are fixed by external or internal fixation systems, e.g., plates and intramedullary nails. Due to its minimally invasive nature, intramedullary nailing technique is the treatment of choice of many surgeons for femoral and tibial shaft fractures.
However, accurate reduction of long bone fractures is difficult to achieve using the conventional surgical techniques. High radiation exposure, to both the patient and the operating team, and malalignment of the bony fragments frequently occur; the latter can dramatically affect the course of healing, leading to nonunion complications. Also, soft tissue damages, due to large manipulation forces and repeated reduction attempts, are common. As such, there is a need to develop systems that can effectively improve clinical outcomes in patients undergoing bone reduction surgery.
This document describes systems and methods to address the shortcomings in the art.